Caught in Possession

Is that the proper term for the offseason that now beckons the Black-and-Red denizens of RFK? (As opposed to the large, furry black-and-brown denizens that scurry among the shadows in the place's damp underbelly.)

I don't know, actually. DC United's last few seasons have ended prematurely, too, as squads that were highly-rated championship contenders stumbled at home in the playoffs. Those setbacks featured frustrated outbursts from players, coaches and club execs and angrily segued into simmering winter breaks. This time around everyone seems to have more of a dazed, vacant befuddled-ness (and if that's not a word, then it should be) as they try to grasp the magnitude of the 2008 failure and the perfect storm of injuries, scheduling demands and bad chemistry that brewed it.

As I peruse various media perspectives this week, on one level it's shocking to hear the DCU brain trust contemplate keeping so much of the command structure in place, especially after top-dog owner Victor MacFarlane's choice words on the season a few weeks ago -- "we paid to be bad" -- but maybe places like New York and New England offer DC contrasting examples of the benefits of stability. United could certainly have done with some roster stability this year, at least when it came to Tom Soehn's starting XI and first options off the bench.

I'll have more after tonight's CONCACAF season closer against Marathon, but for now the simplest and most effective way of noting the mood in Unitedland is to refer you to the current Washington-area conditions on weather.com.

Leaden, cold, ominous.




*HT to How Now Brownpau on the image.